The present invention relates to a device for disengaging snagged fishing hooks and lures. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device which may be fastened to a pole and employed for the disengagement and retrieval of snagged fishing hooks and lures located under the surface of the water.
Previous devices for the disengagement and retrieval of snagged fishing hooks and lures from beneath the surface of the water have included devices such as those described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,851,370 and 2,768,462. The device disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,851,370 includes a releasing device wherein a pole is provided with a yoke-like member attached thereto, the yoke having an opening cut out of its body portion and connected with the yoke by a contracted throat. The device of U.S. Pat. No. 2,768,462 includes a pole having an end member attached thereto which includes a pair of arms folded over each other at the end portion thereof to provide a gap in the end and with an opening within the space surrounded by the arms. Other prior art devices for disengaging snagged fish hooks and lures have included devices which have relied upon gravity and the weight of retrieving device to disengage the snagged hooks.
By the present invention, there is provided an improved device for the disengagement or release of snagged fishing hooks and lures. The device of the present invention includes a hook configuration which facilitates the initial engagement of the device with the fishing line, snagging the line and guiding it into a central opening of the device. The construction and configuration of the present invention effectively prevents disengagement of the fishing line from the device, once the line has passed into the central opening. The particular construction of the present invention provides a rigid connection, with the line of force extending directly from the arm of the fisherman through the pole to the operative end of the device, thus allowing the full effect of the force exerted by the fisherman to be directed in a straight line, without any off-set components which would result in a torque or bending action. In addition, the present invention is provided with a streamlined design which allows the device to be guided down the fishing line to the snagged hook through even the thickest brush or grass without the device becoming entangled in such obstacles.